French forces rescue American during raid to free tourists in Burkina Faso

French soldiers led a raid to rescue two tourists who had been kidnapped in the West African country of Burkina Faso, and ended up also freeing an American and a South Korean who they were unaware were being held.

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The two former French hostages and Korean hostage were brought to the Presidential Palace of Kosyam in Ouagadougou at about 8:50 a.m. local time on Saturday.

French hostage Laurent Lassimouillas paid tribute to the French soldiers killed during the operation in a short statement, saying, "All our thoughts go to the families of the soldiers and the soldiers who lost their lives to free us from this hell, we wanted to offer our condolences right away."

The U.S. woman was not with the other three rescued hostages. Her name has not been released, but a U.S. official described her as being in her 60s.

U.S. forces were not involved in the raid, French defense officials said at a news conference in Paris, but did provide some intelligence support, which helped French forces locate the hostages and their kidnappers.

Marine Nationale

This photo provided Friday, May 10, 2019, by the French army shows navy soldiers Cedric de Pierrepont, left, and Alain Bertoncello.

“It seems these two other hostages [the American and South Korean] had been held hostage for 28 days,” said Francois Lecointre, the chief of staff of the French armed forces.

French Minister of the Armed Forces Florence Parly said French authorities “don’t know much" about the American and South Korean women but that “they are in a safe place.”

Conversations with U.S. and South Korean officials appeared to confirm that neither country had known about the hostages, Parly said.

French officials didn’t share the American’s identity or provide any more information about her.

The spokesperson with the U.S. State Department confirmed that an American had been freed, but would not say if U.S. officials were aware, prior to the raid, that an American woman was being held hostage.

“We are grateful for the successful recovery of four hostages, including a U.S. citizen,” the spokesperson said. “We offer sincerest condolences to the families of the two French soldiers killed during the operation.”

The two French tourists had been on safari in the Pendjari National Park in Benin, near the Burkina Faso border, when they disappeared along with their tour guide on May 1. Three days later, the tour guide, identified as Fiacre Gbedji, was found dead in the park, according to Benin’s Ministry of Interior and Public Safety.